Internet.org

Express Wi-Fi is one of Facebook’s many connectivity initiatives under its internet.org umbrella. Unlike more futuristic projects like the Aquila drone, though, the emphasis here is on existing Wi-Fi technologies and allowing local entrepreneurs to resell internet access. The company is currently trialing this project in India, Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria and Indonesia. Read More

Say what you will about the merits of Facebook’s Internet.org and Free Basics — it’s pretty cool that they’re building a huge, solar-powered, laser-shooting drone to deliver it. But a “structural failure” that occurred on the Aquila’s first test flight may be more serious than Facebook made it out to be: The NTSB is conducting an investigation… Read More

Today on Facebook’s blockbuster Q3 earnings call, Mark Zuckerberg said Internet.org has helped 40 million people get online. Indeed, 0.5% percent of the world’s population is now connected to the internet thanks to Facebook’s accessibility initiatives.
The company even said Internet.org contributed to monthly user growth, which accelerated from 3.63 percent to 4.67… Read More

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s surprise August/September trip to Nigeria and Kenya put the global spotlight on Africa’s emerging IT ecosystem. Unsurprisingly, when one of the world’s most recognized tech entrepreneurs pops up at startups and tech hubs few have heard of it draws attention.
News of Zuckerberg’s unannounced visit broke with social media photos of him… Read More

Earlier today, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded on the launch pad for no apparent reason. While we’re still trying to learn more about what happened, we already know that the company was doing a test, and an anomaly created a big mess. Fortunately, all personnel were clear of the launch pad. But this incident is going to affect Facebook’s Internet.org effort in a significant way as… Read More

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is in Nigeria. News of his unannounced trip broke Tuesday with social media photos of him visiting the Co-Creation Hub (Cchub) innovation center in Lagos.
Zuckerberg then dropped in at Andela, a software developer accelerator, in which he and his wife’s foundation invested $24million earlier this year.
It seems Zuckerberg travels a bit like the… Read More

Obama encouraged companies to continue hiring workers from diverse backgrounds, citing tech companies’ diversity reports as a step in the right direction. The president also discussed censorship of the internet in Egypt and said international leaders need to welcome free speech rather than attempt to stifle it — even if that speech has negative effects.
“It turns out that… Read More

We do not possess the ability to read the future, and yet we can predict with a high level of certainty that we will see more major cybersecurity incidents in 2016 and 2017. The world’s cybersecurity capability is not able to advance in line with the growing vulnerabilities. Incremental security changes will not work. We need disruptive innovation. Read More

Marc Andreessen is having quite a contrite Wednesday. Andreessen, who currently sits on Facebook’s board, caused a stir last night with his online response to Indian Internet regulator TRAI nixing Facebook’s plans to implement its ‘Free Basics’ program in India. Updated with statement from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg below.
He took to the Twitterverse last night… Read More

Sci-fi tech, meet Wall Street. A recent report from Goldman Sachs predicted that within 10 years, virtual reality hardware will be an $80 billion industry. This “base case” forecast assumed that adoption will be slow, as compared to that of smartphones and tablets, but, the report noted, “as the technology advances, price points decline, and an entire new marketplace of… Read More

Free Basics, a Facebook program that gives free access to certain Internet services, has been shut down in Egypt. The news comes the week after India’s telecom regulator ordered the suspension of Free Basics as it prepares to hold public hearings on net neutrality. Read More

Despite rebranding its free Internet.org ‘walled garden’ of apps plan in India under the new name of “Free Basics,” Facebook remains in direct violation of an open internet. Facebook’s first attempt with Indian carrier Airtel was rolled-back soon after its release in April thanks to huge public outrage on social media, ironically. Read More

Free Basics, a service by Facebook initiative Internet.org, is having a rough week in India. First, an email campaign by the social media network was criticized for being heavy-handed and misleading. Now Reliance Communications, one of Facebook’s partners, has agreed to temporarily halt Free Basics on its network after receiving a request from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of… Read More

Internet.org, Facebook’s initiative to provide free Internet services in developing countries, is now available to all Indians through the Free Basics app on Reliance Communication’s network. The project is meant to give people in emerging economies easy access to the Internet, but has been hit by a slew of criticism. Read More

As part of Internet.org, its initiative to bring billions of people around the world online, Facebook will partner with Eutelsat to launch a new satellite that will provide Internet access to parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. Internet.org’s network infrastructure already includes drones and a laser communication system that are now undergoing lab tests, but this is its first project to… Read More

Facebook is marking the one-year anniversary of the launch of its Internet.org service, which enables free mobile access to a selection of web services in emerging markets, with a push to bring more mobile operators into the project.
One key part of that charm offensive is a dedicated portal that provides a go-to resource for operators seeking to connect with Facebook and offer the service… Read More

A lot of people are aware that third-world countries still need Internet access. That’s why there’s Facebook’s sometimes controversial Internet.org. What not a lot of people are aware of is that one out of every four people living in the U.S. don’t have Internet at home.
One in four. Read More

When most Americans hear the term “net neutrality” their eyes begin to glaze over, confusion sets in, and an almost instant-boredom takes over them. But in an emerging market like India, net neutrality means everything. Read More

Facebook’s Internet.org initiative to provide basic internet access for free has been heavily criticized over the past few months, but its business as usual for the U.S. company after its service rolled into Pakistan today. Read More

Facebook is turning Internet.org, its project to provide free internet to new users, into a platform. The move comes amid criticism of the program’s “walled garden” approach to hand-picking services, and claims that it violates the principles of net neutrality.
Criticism of net neutrality has been particularly strong in India, where a zero rating program from operator… Read More